Keynote speakers

A)Josep M. Guerrero (Aalborg University, Denmark)

Abstract: The development of electrical power systems in maritime applications like ships, ferries, vessels and seaports are calling for more advanced technologies integrating power electronics, energy storage devices, control and supervisory systems and onboard communications. The challenges of those electrical isolated systems are being solved in other terrestrial microgrid applications, so that many ideas and concepts can be shifted and adapted in order to reduce the fuel consumption in marine applications. In this keynote, microgrid technologies will be introduced to show how land-based microgrid knowledge can be introduce in shipboard systems. The talk will include: power quality standards and issues in ship board electrical systems, DC microgrids and energy storage systems for ships and ferries, power management systems and optimization for vessels and offshore platforms, and power electronics enabling AC/DC grids in ships. Real and practical cases from industrial manufacturers, projects, and ships measurements and solutions will be given.

Josep M. Guerrero (S’01-M’04-SM’08-FM’15) received the B.S. degree in telecommunications engineering, the M.S. degree in electronics engineering, and the Ph.D. degree in power electronics from the Technical University of Catalonia, Barcelona, in 1997, 2000 and 2003, respectively. Since 2011, he has been a Full Professor with the Department of Energy Technology, Aalborg University, Denmark, where he is responsible for the Microgrid Research Program (www.microgrids.et.aau.dk). From 2012 he is a guest Professor at the Chinese Academy of Science and the Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics; from 2014 he is chair Professor in Shandong University; from 2015 he is a distinguished guest Professor in Hunan University; and from 2016 he is a visiting professor fellow at Aston University, UK, and a guest Professor at the Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications.

His research interests is oriented to different microgrid aspects, including power electronics, distributed energy-storage systems, hierarchical and cooperative control, energy management systems, smart metering and the internet of things for AC/DC microgrid clusters and islanded minigrids; recently specially focused on maritime microgrids for electrical ships, vessels, ferries and seaports. Prof. Guerrero is an Associate Editor for a number of IEEE TRANSACTIONS. He received the best paper award of the IEEE Transactions on Energy Conversion for the period 2014-2015, and the best paper prize of IEEE-PES in 2015. As well, he received the best paper award of the Journal of Power Electronics in 2016. In 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017 he was awarded by Thomson Reuters as Highly Cited Researcher. In 2015 he was elevated as IEEE Fellow for his contributions on “distributed power systems and microgrids.”

B)Tomislav Dragičević (Aalborg University, Denmark)

Speech title: Power electronics — the key technology for renewable energy system integration

Abstract: The energy paradigms in many countries (e.g., Germany and Denmark) have experienced a significant change from fossil-based resources to clean renewables (e.g., wind turbines and photovoltaics) in the past few decades. The scenario of highly penetrated renewables is going to be further enhanced– Denmark expects to be 100 percent fossil-free by 2050. Consequently, it is required that the production, distribution and use of the energy should be as technologically efficient as possible and incentives to save energy at the end-user should also be strengthened. In order to realize the transition smoothly and effectively, energy conversion systems, currently based on power electronics technology, will again play an essential role in this energy paradigm shift. Using highly efficient power electronics in power generation, power transmission/distribution and end-user application, together with advanced control solutions can pave the way for renewable energies. This presentation will address some issues like technology development, implementation, and control of modern systems enabled by power electronics, as well as their roles in supporting future carbon-neutral electrical power grid.

Tomislav Dragičević(S’09-M’13) received the M.E.E. and the industrial Ph.D. degree from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Zagreb, Croatia, in 2009 and 2013, respectively. From 2013 until 2016 he has been a Postdoctoral research associate at Aalborg University, Denmark. From March 2016 he is an Associate Professor at Aalborg University, Denmark. His principal field of interest is overall system design of autonomous and grid connected DC and AC microgrids, and application of advanced modeling and control concepts to power electronic systems. He has authored and co-authored more than 140 technical papers (more than 55 of them are published in international journals, mostly IEEE Transactions) in his domain of interest and 8 book chapters and a book in the field. He serves as an Associate Editor in the IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRIAL ELECTRONICS and in the Journal of Power Electronics. Dr. Dragičević is a recipient of a Končar prize for the best industrial PhD thesis in Croatia, and a Robert Mayer Energy Conservation award.